THE  A H A R ? METHOD 


of 


TRACTOR  PLOWING. 


With. A LlT.1^1' _D3ip_PleaAlD_.Qii 
TRe.  .Ad. 3 XiS.tLwnt  .And.  C.am  ..Of. 
l£aC.tLQJ--2L.gjg£. . 


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PuUAsA^-.i)y_Ail^^tJasr__a^  "JBQHX  AIRI"  . Dow  CA y_ 


Copyright , 
1922 


hy  J.  Leo  Aliart . 


is  book,  including  illustrations,  is  an  original 
work  and  is  fully  protected  by  the  copyright 
law.  All  persons  are  warned  against 
reproducing  the  text  in  whole  or 
in  part  ’without  the  permis- 
sion of  the  author. 


first  Edition. 


Price  (with  Anglemeter) : $1.50,  delivered. 


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The  introduction  of  the  aHaRT  MMTKGD 
of  TRACTOR  PLOWING  is  prompted,  first  of  all, 
by  the  fact  that  no  method  now  in  general  use 
is  without  many  faults  in  the  eyes  of  the  practi- 
cal farmer.  In  accomplishing  the  world's  great- 
est task  - plowing  the  soil  - adverse  conditions 
are  more  often  net  with  than  those  which  are 
ileal.  ft  is  one  thing  to  turn  a large  acreage 
during  the  first  few  days  with  a tractor  plowing 
outfit  in  a large,  level,  and  regular  shaped 
field  but  to  secure  a high  average  daily  perfor- 
mance for  the  completed  job  with  the  same  outfit 
in  a hilly  and  irregular  shaped  field  is  quite 
another  matter.  The  latter  conditions  prevail 
on  the  farm  and  in  the  territories  where  the 
rthart  Method  has  been  developed.  The  Method  is 
designed  to  successfully  meet  the  obstacles  which 
commonly  interfere  with  continuous  operation  un- 
til completion  in  the  fields  of  the  average  corn- 
belt  farm.  This  it  will  do  in  the  mauds  of  the 


av  e r ag  e operate: 


It  is  simple  in  the  extreme 


ho  particular  skill  is  necessary,  as,  for  instance, 
is  demanded  for  the  mastery  of  the  tractor.  It  is 
the  only  method  thus  far  developed  by  which  a 
tractor  can  economically  complete  a v.my  irregular 
field,  large  or  small , and  it  is  pleasing  to  know 
that  by  reason  of  the  sa..e  inherent  features  mich 
make  this  possible,  it  has  completely  replaced 
all  other  methods  wherever  it  mas  once  been  used. 

The  Angle-meter  is  an  important  part  of 
the  Method.  Its  use  is  as  simple  as  the  instru- 


lent  itself 


ef  fee 


s a n atiy  completed  joo 
regardless  of  the  size  or  shape  of  the  field  a.. cl 
without  the  use  of  stakes  or  the  need  of  measuring 
off  distances.  If  the  operator  chooses,  he  may 
lay  out  his  work  without  getting  off  the  tractor. 

In  or di n a ry  oper at  ion  mat r/  of  t he  cir- 
cumstances herein  dealt  with  will  not  we  encounter 
ed.  hut  all  t.ie  conditions  likely  to  be  met  have 
seen  described.  by  familiarizing  nimsmf  with  the 

met , the 

a n 


way  in  'which  these  various  conditions  are 
operator  will  readily  understand  how  to  adapi 


vietnod  to  at 


ne\ 


or  oo. 


-ould  it  arise. 


r 


r* . ’ j i 


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u Cf 



r 

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ip 

:■ 

:PN 

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p: . 

THjJ  ANGLIMETIIR  . 

The  Angl  erne  ter  is  an  instrument  used  to  locate  the 
turn  strips  in  the  /.hart  Method,  of  Tractor  plowing.  It  ac- 
complishes its  work  quickly  and  accurately,  regardless  of  the 
size  of  the  angle  or  the  topography  of  the  land.  An  Angle- 
meter  will  be  found  in  the  envelope  attached  to  the  cover  of 
this  book.  It  is  essentially  a scale  with  a cord  attached, 
properly  designed  to  do  the  /ork  required.  Since  an  under- 
standing of  its  use  is  necessary  before  the  text  of  the  Method 
ca;,  be  intelligently  followed,  the  simple  directions  are  given 
here . 


EIRJCTIOilS  FOR  USIJG  TKM  nhGLTSkLEloSR. 

Refer  to  Pig.  1,  on  the  opposite  page.  Stand  in  the 
corner  so  that  you  can  sight  up  both  fence  lines.  In  case 
there  is  no  fence,  consider  the  border  of  the  field  to  be  plow- 
ed as  one  side  of  the  corner  angle.  Place  the  free  end  of  the 
cord  between  the  teeth  or  hold  it  on  the  chin  with  one  hand  and 
with  the  other  hand  hold  the  scale  at  a distance  sufficient  to 
tighten  the  core.  Keep  the  scale  perpendicular  to  the  cord. 

This  is  net  only  necessary  out  the  scale  is  most  easily  read 

in  this  position.  Mow  scale  the  horizon  between  the  two  sides 
of  the  ansiift.  This  is  easily  done  by  shutting  one  eye  and  using 
the  sca-ie  on  the  horizon  the  same  as  you  would  use  a yardstick 
on  a board.  There  is  always  some  tiling  on  che  horizon  or  be- 
tween you  and  the  horizon  to  mark  the  end  of  the  scale  until 

it  can  be  quickly  shifted  to  a new  position.  It  is  common  to 

measure  from  the  left  to  the  .right . (whatever  the  horizon  mea- 
sures, take  half  of  it,  and  measure  back  this  amount  from  one 
side.  This  determines  the  bisector  of  the  angle  and  the  parti- 
cular feature  on  tine  horizon  or  in  the  foreground  winch  marks 
it  is  the  guide  for  steering  the  tractor  when  laying  out  the 
turn  strip  forvthat  corner.  Therefore,  it  is  veil  to  fix  this 
feature  firmly  in  mind  so  that  you  vill  know  it  when  you  get 
on  the  tractor.  After  becoming  familiar  with  the  use  of  the 
instrument  you  will  probably  not  get  off  the  tractor  to  bisect 
an  angle.  It  can  be  readily  done  by  stopping  the  tractor  in 
the  corner  while  going  the  first  round. 

In  the  drawing,  the  scare  is  shown  to  measure  itself • 
eight  times  on  the  horizon.  Thus  the  bisector  of  th  angle  is 
found  by  measuring  back  th  scale  four  times  from  one  side,  and 
it  happens  to  fall  at  the  edge  of  a group  of  trees  in  the  dis- 
tance . However,  it  is  not  often  that  it  comes  out  even.  You 
will  notice  that  the  scale  is  di viced  into  ten  parts  and  that 
tnese  in  turn  are  divided  into  halves.  Thus  there  are  twenty 
divisions  to  use  if  necessary.  Say  that  the  horizon  in  a parti- 
cular case  measures  9.4  , or  nine  scale  widths  plus  four  divi- 
sions. Half  of  9.4  is  4.7  . Therefore,  the  oisector  is 
located  at  four  scale  /iotas  plus  seven  divisions.  It  is  .veil 
to  measure  th  half  distance  from  both  Sj.oes  to  c teck  the  ac- 
curacy of  your  v/orx,  The  whole  process  xs  extremely  simple 
ana  requires  much  less  time  to  do  than  it  taken  to  describe  it. 
Have  a place  for  your  Angl erne ter  in  the  tractor  tool  box  and 
protect  it  by  wrapping  a piece  of  cloth  arouiiu  it. 


THE  AHaRT-  METHOD  of  TRACTOR  PLOWING- 


PART  ONE:  EIRST  PRINCIPLES 


I nt  rcduct or y : 

An/  farmer  who  has  used  horses  for  plowing,  follow- 
ing the  usual  custom  of  beginning  at  the  outside  of  the  field 
and  going  around  it  continually  until  finished,  knows  the 
following  facts  about  this  method  of  horse  plowing: 


1.  That  it  is  the  quickest  way  to  plow  any  field 
completely . 

2.  That  one  will  always  finish  in  the  center  of 
the  field,  regardless  of  its  size  or  shape. 

3.  That  there  will  be  no  odds  and  ends  left  to 
P 1 o w af  t e rw  a r d s . 

4.  That  it  makes  the  least  number  of  back  furrow 3 
and  dead  furrows . 

5.  That  it  requires  no  need  for  stakes  or  mea- 
suring distances. 

S.  That  its  main  objection  lies  in  the  fact  that 
the  horses  tramp  the  life  out  of  the  freshly  turned 
soil  in  the  turn  rows  which  lead  from  each  corner. 


The  same  man  will  recognize  as  the  chief  limitation 
of  the  modern  tractor  plowing  outfit  its  inability  to  turn 
an  inside  corner  successfully  with  the  plow  in  the  ground 
after  the  first  round  is  made.  He  will  say  that  tractor  plow- 
ing ’would  be  ideal  if  this  problem  were  solved  - if  one  could 
pl  o w ar  o un  Cl  cl  I _L  0 1 d v/ i oil  G tractor  and  at  the  sane  time  elimi- 
nate the  one  objection  he  has  to  this  method  of  horse  plowing. 

In  some  communities , the  horse  farmers  consider 
the  packing  of  the  soil  in  the  turn  rows  a serious  objection 
and  for  this  reason  they  plow  their  fields  by  marking  out  lands 
and  plowing  each  of  these  separately,  even  though  they  lose 
the  many  advantages  of  plowing  around  the  field. 

The  power  farmer  has  generally  used  the  same  method 
of  plowing  out  lands  with  his  tractor  from  the  start  because 
he  has  known  no  other  way  to  meet  the  difficulty  just  mentioned 
Another  reason  why  tractor  plowing  is  almost  always  done  oy 
catting  a field  up  into  lands  is  that  the  thousands  of  tractor 
interested  farmers  who  have  attended  tne  man,,  large  tractor 
plowing  demonstrations  during  recent  years  have  al ways  observed 


thi 


that  the  demonstration  plowing  was  done  tp 
natural  for  one  to  think  that  the  tractor  and  p!o.r 


,nca.  i 


T t- 


v/ as 


would  use  the  best  available  method  in  oro.er  to  demons t: 
their  products  to  the  best  advantage.  Consequently . tc 
was  adopted  wherever  tractors  are  used.  However,  it  /a: 
only  method  that  could  be  used  at  a demonstration  and  g: 
exhibitor  an  equal  chance  in  the  same  field.  It  should 

.hat  it  is  the  best  me 


. 0 t — O -A. 

‘ate 

■ method 
i tne 
ve  each 
not  be 


taken  for 


tted 


iou  to  use  gene. 


Any  farmer  na\  well  ask  himself  the  question:  . 
strati  on  field  really  completed  and  would  1 be 
it  as  a good  job  of  plowing? 

f 6 i 


,-j.e 


demon- 
, l.  o a v 


c e o 


Any  power  farmer  who  has  used  his  praetor  by  plowing 
out  lands  knows  the  faults  .and  limitations  of  this  method.  He 
knows  the  cost  in  loss  of  time  that  results  from  travelling 
a number  of  tines  on  the  sane  ground  at  the  ends  with  the  plow 
out  of  the  ground.  It  can  easily  amount  to  ten  percent  of  the 
total  tine  spent  in  plowing  a regular  shaped  field.  He  knows 
the  difficulties  which  are  sure  to  follow  if  the  lands  are  not 
accurately  staked  out,  one  of  which  is  the  inevitable  flounder- 
ing around  on  the  plowed  ground  with  the  outfit  to  finish  a 
point . Perhaps  he  has  given  up  trying  to  do  a good  job  of  plow- 
ing :/i tli  the  tractor  in  his  more  irregular  shaped  fields,  for 
If  he  has  to  use  horses  to  finish  a number  of  scattered  patches, 
why  net  plow  the  whole  field  with  horses?  He  will  do  it  sooner 
or  later  if  he  does  not  change  his  method  of  tractor  plowing. 

If  we  accepted  the  method  of  plowing  out  lands  as  the  best 
available , knowing  its  many  faults,  we  woul a not  be  keeping 
pace  in  this  important  regard  with  the  rapid  development  ’which 
has  signalized  the  tractor  industry. 

Through  experience  as  a farmer  in  a hilly  section  of 
the  country  , the  author  has  met  about  every  problem  and  condi- 
tion which  can  confront  a man  while  plowing  with  a tractor.  He 
realized  a few  years  back  while  demonstrating  for  one  of  the 
large  tractor  manufacturers  that  if  the  power  farmer  was  to 
have  a method  of  tractor  plowing  which  he  could  use  economically 
in  all  his  fields,  regardless  of  their  size  or  shape,  something 
quite  different  from  anything  then  in  general  use  would  have  to 
be  devised.  To  be  definite  and  usable,  any  new  plan  would  have 
to  be  based  on  true  engineering  principles , yet  so  simple  that 
the  average  operator  could  appreciate  its  advantages  after  a 
single'  trial.  The  Ahart  method  is  a development  of  that  notion. 
Even  in  its  first  year  of  use,  it  was  much  preferred  to  any 
other  method  in  every  field  available  for  trial,  although  the 
turn  strips  were  laboriously  staked  out.  Experience  as  an 
officer  in  field  artillery  during  the  war  led  to  the  invention 
of  the  Atiglemeter,  wmch  has  been  the  greatest  factor  in  im- 
proving the  method.  The  problem  of  handling  the  ae:  a furrows 
and  the  movement  of  the  soil  from  year  to  year  was  adequately 
met.  In  the  few  fields  where  many  dead  furrows  are  i.ecessa-ry 
on  account  of  poor  drainage , the  advantages  of  the.  method 
cannot  be  used  for  it  leaves  very  few  dead  furrows  in  any  field. 

In  a few  words,  the  Ahart  Method  is  a new  system  '"'"h 
of  tractor  plowing  which  can  be  universally  used  with  economy 
in  any  field  adapted  to  power  farming.  By  plowing  around  the 
field  and  providing  strips  of  land,  quickly  and  accurately 
located,  for  the  outfit  to  turn  upon  at  each  corner  where 
necessary,  it  eliminates  the  objections  common  to  other  methods/ 
of  tractor  plowing.  It  makes  possible  the  highest  average 
daily  performance  for  the  completed  field  and  satisfies  the 
first  requisite  of  any  plowing  - a good  job,  less  than  which 
a farmer  who  takes  pride  in  his  work  will  not  tolerate. 


(7; 


\j  at  6 


/ 

/ Note:  The  fur- 
rows are  plowed 
consecutively  as 
numbered. 


SUMMARY  of  METHOD. 


Hirst  Year. 

Plow  once  around  the 
outside  of  the  field,  keeping  the 
desired  distance  away  from  the  fences 
and  going  into  the  corners  as  far  as 
you  can  and  still  make  the  turns  with 
the  plow  in  the  ground. 

2nd  Step:  Use  the  Anglemeter  at  the 
first  corner  and  mark  out  the  turn  strip 
for  a distance  of,  say,  two  hundred  f et. 
ike  the  mark  furrows  straight  and  uni- 


at) out  forty  feet  apart,  with  all 
plowing  only  three  or  four  inches 


/ ished, 
/ furrows 
they  all 
5th  Step: 
f ini  shed . 


m 

f 4?/  MH 
/0  / f°rmly 

/y  ' bottoms 
-•/  . deep . 

* 3rd  Step:  Beginning  at  the  mark  furrow,  plow 
at  full  depth  to  the  next  corner.  Lay  out  the 
turn  strip  for  this  corner,  plow  to  the  next, 
ana  so  on  until  the  second  round  is  plowed  and 
the  field  is  laid  out. 

4th  3 ten:  Plow  until  the  body  of  the  field  is  fin- 

dr  opping 


lift.ng  and  dropping  the  plow  at  the  mark 

prolong  the  mark  furrows  when  necessary  until 
meet  at  the  center  of  the  field. 

Plow  out  the  turn  strips  and  the  field  is 


Laying  Out  A 


(6) 


Three-Cornered 


Hi eld. 


Figure  2. 


The  Method  In  Detail : 

The  simplest  and  best  way  to  acquaint  the  reader  with 
the  basic  principles  of  the  Ahart  Method  is  to  explain  the 
necessary  steps  in  plowing  a certain  field  from  start  to  finish, 
in  the  same  order  that  is  actually  followed  in  the  field.  The 
whole  method  is  very  simple,  as  we  shall  see  when  the  field  is 
finished,  but  the  procedure  will  be  given  here  in  detail  so 
that  not  only  the  few  main  points  will  be  understood,  but  that 
the  reader  may  know  at  first  hand  some  of  the  lesser  points 
which  would  only  come  to  him  through  experience  and  which,  taken 
as  a whole,  constitute  the  best  practice. 

Let  us  choose  a three-cornered  or  triangular  field  to 
plow  first.  Such  a field  is  shown  in  the  drawing  on  the  oppo- 
site page.  Railways  and  drainage  ditches  cause  many  fields  to 
be  of  this  shape.  It  is  what  anyone  would  consider  an  irregular 
field  to  plow  but  since  the  shape  of  the  field  does  not  inter- 
fere with  the  use  of  the  method,  we  might  just  as  well  choose 
a triangular  field  as  one  which  is  perfectly  square  or  rect- 
angular for  the  first  example.  Incidentally,  by  taking  a tri- 
angular field  we  shall  have  an  excellent  chance  to  compare,  as 
we  go  along,  the  salient  features  of  the  Ahart  Method  with 
those  of  other  methods  of  tractor  plowing.  «/e  do  not  care 
particularly  if  the  field  is  level  or  rolling,  large  or  small, 
as  these  factors  will  make  no  difference.  We  are  chiefly  con- 
cerned with  having  a plowing  outfit  which  is  in  good  working 
order  and  an  Anglemeter  in  our  pocket  or  in  the  tractor  tool 
box.  In  the  drawing  on  the  opposite  page,  and  also  in  those 
on  the  following  pages,  the  turn  strips  are  shown  to  be  much 
wider  in  comparison  with  the  size  of  the  field  than  they 
actually  are.  To  facilitate  clear  understanding,  the  drawings 
have  not  been  made  to  scale.  To  simplify  the  text,  the  points 
of  the  compass  are  taken  to  be  the  same  as  on  maps,  i.  e.,  with 
the  top  of  the  page  pointing  north. 

Consider  that  the  field  is  fenced  hog  tight  ana  that 
the  gate  is  where  indicated  (Rig.  2),  in  the  northwest  corner. 
Drop  the  plow  as  soon  as  you  are  through  the  gate  and  start 
right  in  plowing,  going  south  along  the  outside  of  tne  field, 
adjust  the  plow  so  that  all  the  bottoms  will  plow  the  desired 
depth.  If  you  wish,  you  may  plow  very  close  to  the  fence  and 
some  farmers  do  this,  but  the  best  policy  is  never  to  throw 
the  dirt  so  close  that  it  cannot  be  thrown  back  again  easily 
the  next  time  the  field  is  plowed.  This  will  make  it  easy 
to  keep  the  field  level  next  to  the  fences.  Plow  once  around 
the  field  without  lifting  the  plow  at  the  corners.  ,/ith  the 
average  two  or  three  bottom  outfit,  one  will  have  no  difficulty 
in  plowing  as  close  into  the  corner,  if  not  closer,  as  Can  be 
done  with  a gang  plow  and  horses.  Do  not  plow  across  the  gate 
opening  but  pull  the  trip  rope  (or  lever)  just  as  trie  plow  comes 
up  to  the  gate.  Stop  the  tractor  in  the  corner.  Laying  out  the 
turn  strip  for  this  corner  comes  next.  The  job  will  take  only 
a moment  and  the  engine  may  be  left  running. 

A tractor  plowing  outfit  cannot  turn  an  insiae  corner 
of  less  than  135c,  or  so,  with  the  plows  in  t’a  ground  without 
soon  getting  into  trouble  and  making  a bad  joo.  This  problem 

(9) 


is  readily  solved  by  leaving  a strip  of  land  at  each  corner 
vide  enough  for  the  outfit  to  turn  upon  comfortably.  THJC  RULE 
5' OR  LOCATING  THE  TURN  STRIP  NOR  ANY  C ORITUR  IS  SIMPLY  TO  LLAKL3 
IT  DIVIDE  THU  ANGLE  AT  THU  CORNUR  INTO  HALVES.  It  is  important 
to  locate  it  exactly  where  it  should  be.  The  Angl erne ter  does 
this  very  easily  and  quickly.  ^Follow  the  directions  given  for 
its  use  on  page  5. 

The  turn  strips  are  laid  out  by  plowing  mark  furrows 
on  each  side.  In  doing  this,  it  must  be  remembered  that  the 
bisecting  or  middle  line  found  with  the  Angl eme ter  runs  through 
the  center  of  the  strip.  Therefore,  if  a slope  or  hill  immedi- 


ately in  front  of  you  compels  you  to  pick  an  object  oni; 


f ew 


hundred  feet  away  upon  the  slope  or  hill  to  mark  the  bisector, 
you. .must  not  steer  straight  toward  the  object  but  consider  it 
at  the  center  of  the  strip  ana  keep  to  the  right  accordingly. 
The  best  way  in  this  case  is  to  pick  another  object  which  is  to 
the  right  of  the  bisector  the  right  distance  and  use  this  for 
s guide.  A clump  of  grass. 


do 


will 
another 
will  bob 


a prominent  weed,  or  a aarx  spot 
{if  you  wish  to  go  on  over  the  hill, 
the  far  distant  horizon  this  time, 
up  in  time  to  enable  you  to  make  a very  straight  furrow 


for  this  very  well 
object,  perhaps  on 


as  far  as  you  wish  to  go.  The  main  thing  is  to  keep  your  eye 
upon  something  as  far  away  as  possible.  Nc  error  will  result 
by  steering  straight  toward  any  bisecting  mark  which  is  over 
a quarter  of  a mile  away,  unless  the  field  is  a very  large  one. 

width  to  make  the  turn  strip  depends  upon  how  close 
your  tractor  can  turn  easily.  Per  the  average  two  bottom  out- 
fit, .35  feet  is  aboigt  right.  The  average  three  bottom  outfit 
will  t urn  'e^TTy^'on  a wi dt h of_  4 5_  feet.  Por  plowing  the  mark 
furrows,  the  plow  is  set  so  that  all  the  bottoms  will  plovf  only 
three  or  four  inches  deep.  The  outfit  will  cross  the  mark  fur- 
rows many  times  and  to  plow  deep  here  ’would  result  in  jolting 
the  tractor  and.  operator  needlessly.  The  beginner  should  not 
attempt  to  mark  out  a turn  strip  for  a distance  of  more  than 
a few  hundred  feet.  It  can  oe  prolonged  easily  at  any  time  when 
necessary.  On  plowing  back  to  the  corner  to  nark  out  the  other 
side  of  the  strip  (furrow  No.  3),  the  best  way  is  to  begin  as 
far  away  from  the  furrow  just  made  as  is  necessary  to  give  the 
strip  the  right  width  and  head  straight  for  a fence  x^cst  or 
other  object  which  is  the  proper  distance  to  the  right  of  the 
corner  to  maintain  that  width.  If  you  qannot  see  the  corner 
from  where  you  start  back,  use  some  other  mark  in  front  of  you 


until  you  can. 


As  the  corner  is  closely  approached,  lift  the  plow 
in  time  to  enable  you  to  turn  on  the  strip  and  cross  the  mark 
furrow  (No.  2)  parallel  with  the  first  furrow  made.  Plow  to 
the  south  corner  at  full  depth.  Lift  the  plow  just  before 
reaching  it,  stop  in  the  corner,  set  the  plow  back  to  plow 
shallow,  and  mark  out  the  turn  strip  for  that  corner  in  the 
same  manner  as  for  the  first.  Th_ s done,  plow  to  the  northeast 
corner,  mark  out  its  turn  strip,  and  so  on  until  the  second 
round  is  plowed  and  the  field  is  laid  out.  Prom  new  on,  you 


may  plow  without  interruption  until  the  turn  strips  have  to  be 
prolonged,  which  requires  very  little  time.  As  you  continue 
to  plow,  you  will  notice  that  you  turn  on  the  same  ground  only 
once  and  that  you  spend  very  little  time  in  turning  for  it  is 
always  the  same  short  distance  and  never  a full  turn.  The 
ruhe  to  follow  in  lifting  and  dropping  the  plow  to  do  a clean 
even  joo  is  to  pull  the  crip  just  as  the  point  of  the  first 
bottom  reaches  the  edge  of  the  mark  furrow  in  every  case.  If 
the  plow  is  properly  adjusted  and  lubricated,  it-  should  leave 
end  enter  the  ground  within  the  width  of  the  mark  furrow . 

The  operator  will  soon  learn  that  he  can  begin  to 
turn  the  tractor  to  the  left  as  soon  as  he  has  pulled  the  trip 
to  raise  the  plow,  but  that  he  must  be  careful  to  cross  the 
mark  furrow  on  the  -qther  side  straight  in.,  the  direction  he  is 
going  to  plow  in  order  to  do  a ~good  job  when  start! ng"'"Tnre'~Tur r ow 
However,  if  he  dees  not  steer  carefully  or  the  plow  does  not 
function  as  it  should  for  some  reason,  the  result  need  not 
blemish  his  work  for  very  long  as  he  can.  easily  rectify  the 
job  the  next  time  he  comes  around.  The  furrow  will  auto- 
mat i cully  become  straight  as  the  crook  disappears  with  the  ever 
shortening  furrows.  It  pays  to  throttle  down  the  engine  at 
the  corners.  The  operator  then  has  a fair  chance  to  do  his 
work  properly  and  the  plow  to  function  as  it  should. 

-Then  one  is  well  started  on  a field  and  has  a width 
of  about  200  feet  plowed  away  from  each  fence,  the  wisdom  of 
making  the  turn  strips  exactly  bisect  the  corners  will  be  seen. 
Alien  the  strip  is  hot  where  it  should  be,  the  result  will  be 
as  shown  in  either  Fig.  3 or  Pig . 4,  page  12.  The  operator 
will  not  be  able  to  leave  one  furrow  and  turn  directly  into 
another,  as  he  should,  but  will  have  to  travel  a short  distance 
on  the  turn  strip  to  properly  begin  a new  furrow.  Furthermore, 
this  trouble  will  increase  as  he  continues  to  plow  and  use  the 
same  mark  furrows  and  will  be  more  pronounced  if  the  turn 
strip  has  been  made  too  narrow  for  comfortable  turning.  This 
condition  will  ra-rely  occur,  if  ever,  with  the  proper  use  of 
the  Anglemeter.  If  it  ever  does  occur,  it  should  not  be 
allowed  to  exist,  for  the  remedy  is  easy.  Disregard  the  mark 
furrows  which  remain  unused  and  plow  new  mark  furrows  after 
the  manner  snown  in  Fig.  5 and  Fig.  6,  page  12.  To  determine 
where  the  new  furrows  should  be  made,  stand  at  the  spot  which 
is  in  line  with  the  two  deep  furrows  and  use  the  Anglemeter  tG 
locate  the  half-way  point  between  them. 

ns  the  field  is  being  finished,  all  the  turn  strips 
will  meet  in  the  same  place  and  this  place  will  be  the  same 
distance  from  each  of  the  three  fences.  This  will  be  true  in 
any  three-sided  field  for  it  is  a law  of  geometry  that  the 
bisectors  of  the  angles  of  any  triangle  meet  in  a point  which 
is  the  same  distance  from  each  of  its  three  sides.  ;7e  know 
that  if  we  plow  around  a three-cornered  field  or  a field  of 
any  shape  with  horses  and  a sulky  plow,  we  will  finish  in  the 
center  of  the  field,  and  that  we  need  not  worry  at  any  time 


(11) 


z 


/ /// 

y/y 


ML 


ti 


! u ^ 


~i r- 


Fig.  6. 

Figs.  3 and  4:  Result  when  turn  strip  is  not  properly  locate< 
Figs.  5 and  6:  Method  of  locating  turn  strip  properly.  ( The 

above  figures  are  exaggerated) . 


1/ 


Fig.  7. 


(12) 


Fig.  8 . 


about  how  we  are  going  to  come  out  at  the  end.  In  the  Ahart 
Method,  the  turn  strips  fall  exactly  where  the  turn  rows  would 
if  the  field  were  plowed  with  horses.  Herein  lies  the  practi- 
cal success  of  the  method  and  the  basic  principle  of  its 
simplicity  and  adaptability  in  any  field. 

Completing  The  Field : 

■Alien  the  body  of  the  field  is  plowed,  only  the 
turn  strips  are  left  and  these  are  quickly  plowed  out.  Two 
or  more  are  combined  whenever  possible  and  plowed  as  one.  The 
combined  strips  should  include  the  one  leading  to  the  gate 
as  these  are  plowed  last.  The  isolated  strips  are  plowed  first 
so  that  the  turning  at  the  inner  end  may  be  done  on  unplowed 
ground.  In  plowing  the  strips,  begin  next  to  the  mark  fur- 
rows and  throw  the  soil  outward.  The  dead  furrows  will  fall 
in  the  center  of  the  turn  strips.  In  case  the  field  i§ 
similar  to  the  one  just  plowed,  no  back  furrows  will  be  made 
the  first  year.  The  finished  field  is  shown  in  Fig.  7.  Notice 
that  the  turn  strip  leading  from  the  northeast  corner  has 
been  plov/ed  first  and  that  the  other  two  were  plowed  together. 

A satisfactory  method  of  completing  a fenced  corner 
is  as  follows:  Make  the  turn  at  the  end  on  the  turn  strip 
as  many  times  as  it  can  be  done  handily  with  the  engine 
throttled  down,  lifting  the  plow  as  soon  as  it  will  not  fol- 
low the  furrow  previously  made.  When  the  turning  room  be- 
comes too  cramped,  cross  the  plowed  ground  and  swing  to  the 
left  as  close  to  the  fence  as  possible,  lifting  the  plow  when 
it  reaches  the  outside  furrow  or  as  soon  as  it  enters  ground 
which  has  already  been  plowed.  See  Fig.  8.  Swing  on  the 
plowed  ground  in  a wide  enough  circle  to  come  in  close  to 
the  fence  on  the  other  side  and  drop  the  plow  as  coon  as  the 
tractor  is  headed  in  the  direction  of  the  new  furrow.  Repeat 
this  on  the  remaining . rounds  and  an  extra  time  if  necessary. 

When  the  corner  is  not  fenced  on  one  or  both  sides  and  it  is 
possible  to  make  the  turn  on  an  adjacent  field,  or  if  there 
is  a gate  to  go  through  to  make  the  turn,  no  extra  pains  are 
necessary  to  finish  a corner  right. 

The  procedure  will  be  slightly  different  in  plowing 
this  field  the  next  time  on  account  of  the  necessity  of 
filling  the  old  dead  furrows  and  back  furrowing  along  the  fences. 
This  subject  will  be  fully  treated  in  another  part  of  this  book. 


Note  : 

When  a triangular  field  is  plowed  "in  lands",  more 
time  is  wasted  in  turning  than  when  a rectangular  field  of 
twice  its  area  is  plowed  by  the  same  method,  when  the  two  fields 
have  the  same  width  and  length.  This  is  because  the  same 
number  of  furrows  and  turns  are  made  in  each  and  oecause  half 
the  turns  in  the  triangular  field  are  longer  and  harder  to  make. 


(13) 


Fig.  10. 

A Square  Field. 


Fig . 9 . 

A Rectangular  Field. 

A 


(14) 


PART  TWO:  PLOWING  FIELDS  OF  VARIOUS  SHAPES. 


The  reader  has  already  been  given  a general  idea  of 
how  he  should  use  the  Ahart  Method  in  any  field.  However,  in 
order  that  he  may  enter  any  field  with  the  confidence  which 
comes  only  with  a definite  Knowledge  of  the  steps  which  will  be 
taken  go  complete  the  field  properly  and  with  the  least  ex- 
penditure of  time,  fuel,  and  wear  and  i^ar  on  the  machinery, 
this  part  will  oe  devoted  exclusively  to  the  derails  of  plow- 
ing fields  of  such  different  shapes  as  the  operator  will  com- 
monly or  occasionally  meet.  The  different  topographical  con- 
ditions likely  to  be  encountered  will  be  treated  insofar  as 
they  affect  the  manner  of  plowing  the  field.  Obstacles,  such 
as  straw  stacks,  swampy  places,  ditches,  and  the  like,  also 
require  special  attention,  and  the  methods  outlined  herein  for 
handling  them  have  been  found  in  practice  to  be  the  most  satis- 
f ac  t o ry . 

Uith  the  reader  already  familiar  with  the  first 
principles  of  the  general  method,  it  will  be  sufficient  to 
give  only  the  special  directions  necessary  in  each  case  of  the 
different  shared  fields.  An  effort  has  seen  made  to  make  the 
drawings  practically  self-explanatory  to  anyone  familiar 'with 
the  first  principles  as  explained  in  the  first  part  of  this 
book . 

The  Rectangular  Field. 

(Fig.  9 ) 

By  far  the  greatest  number  of  fields  to  be  plowed  are 
rectangular  in  shape,  Li^ow  until  the  strip  left  through  the 
middle  of  the  field  is  as  wide  as  the  turn  strips,  then  plow  it 
as  a part  of  the  turn  strips.  There  is  no  need  to  travel  with 
the  plow  our  of  the  ground  in  going  from  one  short  turn  strip 
to  the  other  to  plow  them  first.  Plow  on  the  middle  strip  when 
going  from  one  to  the  other. 

,/he n the  field  is  almost  square,  the  operator  will  be 
tempted  to  mark  out  the  turn  strips  diagonally  between  the 
opposite  corners,  without  using  the  ^nglerneter.  If  the  field 
is  not  ,a  perfect  square,  he  will  soon  have  trouble  with  turn 
strips  so  located.  ,Vhen  the  field  is  not  square,  the  turn 
strips  laid  out  in  this  manner  will  not  bisect  the  corners,  in 
conformity  with  the  rule  given  near  the  top  of  page  10.  Unless 
the  field  is  known  to  be  exactly  square,  use  the  Anglemeter. 

It  is  necessary  even  in  a perfectly  square  field  where  the 
opposite  corners  cannot  be  seen  from  each  other. 

The  Square  Field. 

(Fig.  10 j 

a square  is  a rectangle  ’with  equal  sides.  Therefore, 
strips  will  follow  the  diagonals  between  opposite 
1'pl  nvJ  +hp  fi-r-gt.  two  turn  strips  (southwest  and  north- 
ease  of  Fig.  10;  together,  out  lift  the  plow  when 
the  center. 


the  turn 
corners . 

• ast , in 
crossing 


(15) 


X 

X 


Fig.  12. 

An  Irregular  Pour-Sided  Field. 


(16) 


The  Trapezoidal  Field. 
(Fig.  11) 


This  shape  of  field  is  formed  when  the  fences  on  two 
opposite  sides  are  parallel.  The  drawing  illustrates  a field 
in  which  the  turn  strip  is  required  in  each  corner.  In  a field 
of  this  shape  where  one  or  two  angles  are  more  than  135  de- 
grees (or  one  and  one-half  right  angles,  as  shown),  the  outfit 
will  he  able  to  make  the  turn  without  lifting  the  plow  and  a 
turn  strip,  therefore,  is  unnecessary.  Some  tractors  can  turn 
a shorter  corner  than  others  without  having  to  lift  the  plow, 
hy  'wiping  out'1  a corner  occasionally,  as  described  later  in 
the  text,  such  corners  are  easily  handled  if  the  turning  tends 
to  bee ome  c r amp e d . 


The  Irregular  Four-Sided  Field. 

(Fig.  12) 

f 

When  the  two  shortest  turn  strips  come  together,  the 
remaining  unplowed  ground  will  be  triangular ■ in  shape.  See 
dotted  lines.  Simply  bisect  the  newly  formed  angle  and  con- 
tinue to  plow.  This  instance  will  happen  often  in  plowing 
irregular  fields.  It  will  happen  in  the  case  of  a trapezoidal 
field  which  is  longest  between  the  parallel  sides  and  when  one 
of  these  sides  is  comparatively  short. 

The  L- Shaped  Field. 

(Fig.  13) 

a.  field  of  this  shape  is  very  difficult  to  plow/  with 
any  other  method.  It  is  easy  to  plow  with  the  Ahart  Ilethod. 
Continued  turning  around  the  outside  corner,  A,  will  result  in 
an  irregular  area  to  plow  at  the  finish.  This  is  handled  in 
the  same  manner  as  in  every  other  instance  where  one  or  both 
sides  of  a corner  is  curved  or  crooked,  which  is  as  follows: 
WH3N3V3R  0113  OR  BOTH  SIDES  OF  A CORNER  ARE  CURVED,  PROLONG  THE 
MARK  FURR0.73  111  SHORT  LENGTHS,  so  that  they  nay  be  curved  ac- 
curately to  conform  with  the  curved  side  or  sides.  one 

side  is  curved  and  the  other  is  straight,  as  in  the  case  at 
hand,  the  curvature  of  the  turn  strip  will  properly  be  half  as 
much  as  the  curvature  of  the  side.  This  will  be  illustrated 
to  better  advantage  in  the  next  case  taken,  that  of  the  very 
irregular  field. 

The  Very  Irregular  Field. 

(Fig.  14) 

Although  this  field  would  seem  to  be  a difficult  pro- 
position for  a tractor  plowing  outfit,  it  is  no  exception  to 
the  general  application  of  the  method.  There  is  very  little 
difference  between  the  manner  of  plowing  this  field  and  the 
rectangular  field  in  Fig.  9.  The  only  difference  is  tn&t  in 
the  corners  which  have  one  or  both  sides  curved,  the  turn 
strips  are  advanced  in  shorter  lengths,  depending  on  the  cur- 
vature of  the  sides.  If  the  curve  is  short , like  tnat  in  tn . 

(17) 


% 


river  near  the  gate,  a hundred  feet  would  be  far  enough  to  mark 
out  the  turn  strip  for  this  corner  at  first.  By  doing  this,  it 
is  easy  to  keep  the  turn  strip  half-way  between  the  sides.  When 
the  distance  between  the  sides  is  not  many  times  greater  than 
the  width  of  the  turn  strip,  the  operator’s  judgment  will  tell 


lim  accurately  enough  where  the  bisecting  line  ''WTT'l  Tmr  wl  th- 


out  using  the  Anglemeter.  The  main  thing  in  this  case  is  to 
estimate  the  location  of  the  center  line  first  and  then  be  care' 
ful  to  plow  the  mark  furrows  the  same  distance  away  from  it  on 
both  sides.  The  Anglemeter  should  be  used,  however,  in  all 
cases  where  the  width  b-  tween  the  sides  is  comparatively  large, 
even  if  one  or  both  sides  are  curved, 
ed  in  Fig.  15. 


The  method  is  illustrat- 


How  To  Use  The  Anglemeter  When  The  Sides  Are  Curved. 


Bisector 


- O 


V-v, 


7 


Fig . 15  . 


Stand  in  the  corner -or  at  the  center  of  the  turn  strip, 
as  indicated.  Choose  two  points,  one  on  each  side,  which  are 
about  the  same  distance  from  where  you  are  standing.  These 
points  are  shown  at  A and  B.  Use  the  Anglemeter  between  these 
points.  When  plowing  the  mark  furrows,  curve  th  Vi.  < S 1 1 ghtly  to 
conform  with  the  curve  at  the  sides.  In  the  case  illustrated 
above,  the  turn  strip  will  be  curved  very  little. 


The  Field 


Which  Finishes  In  More  Than  One  plac 

Uig.  16) 


many  times,  as  in  the  field  pictured  on  the  next  page, 
a field  will  be  narrower  through  the  middle  than  at  either  end. 
./'non  the  plowing  has  progressed  until  the  furrows  almost  meet 
in  the  middle,  as  indicated  by  the  dotted  lines,  the  two  parts 


Fi  g . 17. 

A Field  Made  Irregular  At  One  Corner 
By  An  Orchard  Or  farmstead. 


(20) 


are  plowed  separately.  When  both  are  finished,  the  connecting 
turn  strips  ate  really  one  and  are  plowed  as  such.  This  type 
of  field  is  often  found  in  hilly  or  rolling  sections  of  the 
country.  The  field  may  not  originally  be  of  such  shape  that 
it  will  finish  in  more  than  one  place,  but  it  is  often  neces- 
sary to  plow  a field  in  parts  on  account  of  not  being  able  to 
throw  the  furrows  up  hill.  These  parts  are  almost  always  ir- 
regular in  shape  and  may  finish  in  a number  of  places.  Such 
a field  w ill  be  described  later  under  the  subject  of  the  hilly 
field . 


The  Field  Made  Irregular  By  An  Inset  At  The  Corner. 

(Fig.  17) 

The  operator  is  often  at  a loss  to  know  the  best  way 
to  plow  a field  when  one  corner  is  occupied  by  a garden  patch, 
orchard,  or  the  farm-yard.  If  the  inset  is  square  and  quite 
small , he  may  drive  around  it  with  the  plow  out  of  the  ground 
and  make  a turn  strip  at  the  southwest  corner  of  -the  plot  when 
he  gets  there.  However,  if  the  area  is  as  great  as  the  average 
orchard  of  farmstead  usually  is,  a lot  of  time  will  be  wasted 
in  running  "empty"  around  it.  The  best  way  in  this  case  is  to 
plow  around  the  plot  and  make  turn  strips  when  necessary.  Soon- 
er or  later,  depending  on  the  size  of  the  plot,  the  turning 
angle  on  one  of  the  strips  will  become  great  enough  so  that  the 
turn  can  be  made  without  lifting  the  plow,  as  at  A in  the  draw- 
ing. This  is  because  the  curvature  of  the  furrow  plowed  around 
the  corner  becomes  greater  as  the  plowing  proceeds.  After  the 
first  furrow  has  been  plowed  across  the  turn  strip  at  A,  plow 
out  the  turn  strip  immediately  so  that  the  end  turning  can  be 
done  on  unplowed  ground.  Then  proceed  with  the  remainder  of  the 
field  as  usual.  In  this  case,  the  gate  has  been  placed  at  the 
farmstead.  The  continuous  turn  strip,  as  well  as  tiiose  in  pre- 
vious drawings,  is  plowed  last.  Thus,  when  the  outfit  goes 
through  the  gate  the  last  time,  the  field  has  been  finished 
with  no  unnecessary  running  around. 

The  Hilly  Field, 

(Fig.  18) 

The  man  who  farms  in  the  hills  has  many  experiences 
which  are  unknown  to  the  man  who  farms  level  or  slightly  roll- 
ing land.  A plow  will  not  throw  a furrow  up  hill  at  normal 
plowing  speed  and  do  a good  job  of  turning  the  furrow  slice 
when  the  grade  approaches  the  neighborhood  of  ten  percent(ten 
feet  rise  in  one  hundred  feet).  When  a field  contains  a hill, 
the  method  must  be  altered  to  conform  to  it  if  plowing  in  the 
regular  way  will  result  in  any  considerable  amount  of  throwing 
the  furrov/s  up  hill.  It  is  a fine  thing  to  have  the  field  con- 
form to  the  hill,  as  is  common  in  the  palouse  country  of  the 
Northwest,  but  it  is  not  always  practical  to  do  so.  Not  only 
is  the  direction  of  throwing  the  furrow  a factor,  but  it  is 
always  desirable  to  mount  the  hill  where  the  grade  is  easiest 
for  the  tractor.  To  overwork  a tractor  is  one  of  the  quickest 


(21) 


Fig . 18 . 

A Hilly  Field. 


Fig.  19. 

A Basin  Shaped  Field. 
(22) 


end  it  to  the  junk  pile.  The  operator  must  remember  tlia 
ye  drawbar  pull  of  a tractor  is  considerably  iessen- 
lit  amounts  to  1%  of  the  combined  weight  of  the 
grade,  For  example,  if  the  combined 
plow,  and  operator  is  7500  pounds,  the 
of  the  tractor  would  be  lessened  by  750 
If  it  is  a three  bottom  outfit  and  the 
tractor  is  being  overworked  and  overstrained  on  certain  grades 
the  reasonable  thing  to  do  is  to  take  off  one  of  the  bottoms. 


*v ays  to 
the  effect'!' 
ed  on  a grade 
outfit  for  every  1%  of 
weight  of  the  tractor, 
effective  drawbar  pull 
pounds  on  a 1 0%  grade. 


Most  tractor  plows  are  made  so 


that  this  is  easily  and  quickl; 


done.  A little  planning  and  thought  beforehand  in  laying 
the  work,  however,  may  even  make  this  unnecessary . 


on 


Consider 
characteristic  cas 


the  field  illustrated  in  . 
For  a short  time,  this 


rr 

- o 

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plowed  in  the  usual  way  without  any  difficulty  but  as  soon  as 
the  plowed  strip  becomes  wide  enough  to  reach  over  the  mill  on 
the  south  side,  the  furrows  would  have  to  be  thrown  up  hill. 
if  the  plowing  is  continued  in  the  same  direction.  There  is 
nothing  to  prevent  the  operator  from  plowing  the  hill  and  tne 
land  around,  the  foot  of  it  separately  first  and  tne  rest  oi 
the  field  afterwards,  as  shown.  Hot  only  can  it  be  arranged 
in  this  way  to  throw  the  furrows  in  the  right  direction,  but 
it  can  often  be  arranged  so  that  the  tractor  can  go  up  the  easi- 
est grades  and  a own  the  steepest.  The  field  will  be  made  into 
two  or  more  irregular  parts,  but  we  have  learned  that  this  is  no 
particular  objection. 

The  ability  to  do  side  hill  work  depends  on  one  type 
of  tractor,  whether  or  not  it  runs  with,  one  drive  wheel  in  the 
furrow,  and  how  it  is  equipped.  Very  little  or  no  uixf iculty 
will  be  experienced  in  average  hill -side  work  with  a tractor 
which  runs  with  both  drive  wheels  on  the  unplowed  ground  and 
which  is  equipped  with  extension  rims  of  sufficient  width.  ^ 
self -steering  device  is  of  little  use  in  hill-sine  plowing,  as 
tne  operator  must  be  able  to  keep  varying  distances  away  from 
the  furrow  bank,  depending  on  the  steepness  of  the  slope,  in 
order  to  keep  from  sliding  into  the  furrow  and  to  have  each 


bottom  cut  the  proper  width. 


The  basin  Shaped  Field. 

(Fig.  19) 

The  field  which  slopes  towards  the  center  on  ail  sides 
is  best  plowed  by  throwing  the  furrows  in  the  same  direction. 
This  may  be  done  in  different  ways.  ^ common  practice  is  to 
begin  in  the  middle  and  plow  continually  until  one  or  more  bor- 
ders of  the  field  are  reached,  without  lifting  the  plow.  This 
method  results  in  many  three -cornered  patches  being  left,  which 
is  undesirable,  a better  way  is  to  keep  the  corners  square  so 
that  patches  will  not  be  left.  Square  corners  may  be  made  in 
two  ways  when  going  around,  the  field  to  the  right.  First,  by 
making  a quarter  turn  on  a turn  strip  and,  secondly,  by  making 
a three-quarter  turn  to  the  left  without  a turn  strip.  The 
turning  on  a turn  strip  may  be  done  to  the  right  as  handily  as 
to  the  left.  Whether  or  not  a turn  strip  is  used  at  the  cor- 


(23; 


ners,  the  Anglemeter  will  quickly  locate  where  the  turning 
should  be  done  and  will  locate  accurately  the  place  in  the 
center  of  the  field  where  the  plowing  must  begin  to  finish 
right  in  the  end.  The  procedure  is  almost  the  same  whether 
a turn  strip  is  used  or  not.  There  are,  however,  some  dif- 
ferences between  the  method  which  should  be  followed  and 
what  has  already  been  discussed  and  it  will  be  well  to  treat 
the  case  in  detail.  Refer  to  Fig.  19. 

,Ve  will  choose  a somewhat  irregular  field  and  do 
the  turning  to  the  left,  as  shown , without  making  a turn  strip. 
When  the  method  is  understood  under  these  circumstances,  it 
can  readily  be  applied  to  any  regular  shaped  field  and  the 
reader  will  know  just  how  to  proceed  with  making  turn  strips 
when  these  are  desired. 

We  are  mainly  concerned  with  locating  the  place  in 
the  middle  of  the  field  where  the  plowing  should  begin  in 
order  to  come  out  even  all  around  the  outside  of  the  field, 
v/e  are  able  to  do  this  without  setting  stakes  or  stepping  off 
distances  by  simply  using  the  Anglemeter.  Bisect  the  corner  at 
the  gate  and  check  the  work  by  doing  it  twice.  Keep  close 
account  of  what  half  the  angle  measured,  either  in  the  mind 
or  on  peper.  Keep  account  of  the  other  half  angles  to  be 
measured  also.  Set  the  plow  to  work  as  shallow  as  it  will 
without  gathering  trash  and  PLOW  Oil  THE  BISECT I1TG  LIRE  until 
it  is  certain  that  the  center  of  the  field  has  been  reached 
or  passed.  It  is  best  to  go  some  distance  past  the  center  to 
make  this  certain.  Remember  the  object  in  the  distance  which 
is  used  as  a guide  to  pi ow  a straight  furrow  as  the  same  ob- 
ject will  soon  be  used  again.  Remember  the  guide  for  each 
of  the  following  corners,  also.  Run  empty  up  to  the  next 
(northeast)  corner  and  plow  the  bisector  of  this  corner  in 
the  same  manner.  The  bisectors  of  the  remaining  corners  are 
extended  until  they  meet  the  others,  as  shown.. 

The  next  thing  is  to  lay  out  one  round  at  the  cen- 
ter which  will  start  the  operator  out  properly.  This  round 
f will  inclose  a small  area  of  an  acre  or  so.  The  idea  is  to 
make  the  sides  of  the  inclosed  area  parallel  to  and  the  same 
distance  from  the  respective  sides  of  the  field.  Choose  a 
I point  which  is  on  one  of  the  bisectors  and  a short  distance 
(40  or  50  feet  ; from  where  it  crosses  another,  |Say.  a point 
on  the  northwest  bisector  is  taken.  Stand  here  ana  with  the 
Anglemeter  measure  from  the  guiding  object  of  this-  bisector 
to  the  left  as  far  as  half  the  northwest  corner  angle  mea- 
sured. In  other  words,  make  angle  A’  equal  to  angle  A.  Pick 
out  something  in  the  distance  to  mark  the  left  side  of  angle 
A'  . Cross  the  spot  where  the  measuring  was  done  in  the  direc- 
tion of  this  mark  and  plow  at  full  depth  until  the  next  bisector 
is  crossed.  Lift  the  plow  here  and  swing  in  a circle  to  the 
left.  In  like  manner,  make  angle  B’  equal  to  angle  B,  and 
plow  until  the  southwest  bisector  is  crossed.  Go  on  around, 
making  angles  C ’ and  C equal  and  angles  D ' and  D equal,  each 
time  crossing  the  oisector  to  begin  a new  furrow  where  the  last 
one  left  off.  If  the  work  has  been  properly  done,  the  opera- 
tor will  come  out  at  the  point  where  he  started.  Not  only  are 
all  the  furrows  just  made  parallel  to  the  correspond- 


inf  sides  of  the  field,  but  all  of  them  are  also  the  same  ais- 

tance  from  the  outside  of  the  field.  Consequently , oy  plowing 

continually  around  the  small  area  as  marked  out,  and  making^  t ie 
. . . j .• _ j j.-u  ^ -pi  n i a wi  n i Vio  -F-i  ni  n.  i ons 


turns  in  the  manner  indicated,  the  field  will  be  mushed  aiong 
ail  the  fences  at  the  same  time.  The  next  thing  to  do^,  howewer, 
is  to  plow  out  the  small  area.  The  oest  way  is  to  back  fuiaov. 


f 

a 

is  to 
along 


oest  way  is  to  back  furrow 
a dead  furrow  in  the  miudle 
i to  swing  in  a large 


out  the  small  area.  The 
the  parallel  sides  and  come  to 
The  operator  must  be  careful 
enough  .circle  at  the  corners  to  keep  one  furrows  straight  at  al 
en  the  field  is  almost  finished  and  there  is  not^  .loo,.. 
to" "the  left  in  the  corners,  make  round  corners  without 

t'^A 


times 
to  turn 
lifting 
furrow  and 
places  are 


ne  plow.  If  there  are-  any  uneven  places  between  tiw 
the  fence  in  fini shing  up,  wait  until  the  narrower 
about  two  rounds  wide  and  then  straighten  ever/tning 
up  by  running  empty  past  these  places  until  the  same  widtn  is 
attained  all  the  way  around  the  field.  This  will  give  the  out- 
fit plenty  of  room  to  work  in  and  the  last  round  or  two  will 
finish  the  field  neatly.  (ftien  there  is  much  side  hill  worx  of 
varying  grades,  the  operator  must  expect  more  or  less  uneveness 
at  the  finish  on  account  of  slippage.  If  an  effort  is  naae  to 
keep  the  furrows  straight  at  all  times,  finishing  up  will  o : 
much  easier. 


In  a regular  shaped  field,  the  method  of  laying  out 
the  center  area,  will  be  the  same  as  in  the  trapezoidal  field 
just  discussed,  except  that  all  the  corners  being  right  angles 
makes  it  a bit  simpler.  There  may  be  times  when  the  center 
area  will  be  of  a different  shape  than  the  field.  laxe  fur 
instance  the  irregular  four-sided  field  shown  in  Pig.  12,  In 
this  case,  to  make  the  center  area  large  enough  to  include  a 
side  parallel  to  the  short  fence  on  the  north  side  would  make 
it  too  large  to  plow  out  handily.  If  the  area  witnin  the 
dotted  lines  lies  level  enough  to  plow  by  throwing  the  fur- 
rows outward,  it  could  very  well  be  plowed  in  this  manner  by^ 
using  turn  strips  exactly  as  shown  and  plowing  the  rest  of  the 
field  as  in  Pig.  19.  However,  if  the  basin  shaped  slopes 
continue  down  into  this  area,  the  best  plan  is  to  plow  a 
straight  furrow  between  the  two  bisector  intersections  ana 
plow  on  the  triangle  until  the  intersection  of  the  shorter 
bisectors  is  reached.  Thus,  in  every  case,  a little  thought 
will  result  in  a plan  which  will  work  out  very  nicely. 

If  the  operator  would  rather  use  turn  strips  on 
account  of  quicker  turning,  he  only  has  to  mark  them  out  in 
the  usual  manner  but  for  their  full  length.  In  this  case,  the 
sides  of  the  small  area  at  the  center  are  laid  out  from  the 
center  of  the  turn  strips,  which  is  in  reality  on  the  bisectors 
Sometimes,  as  when  the  soil  is  all  but  too  wet  to  plow,  it  is 
objectionable  to  make  the  left  hand  turns  on  account  of  pack- 
ing the  soil . oy  running  over  the  same  ground  more  than  once. 

In  this  case,  the  operator  will  prefer  to  use  turn  strips  for 
they  make  it:  possible  to  turn  on  the  same  ground  onl„  once. 


When  A Large  Turn  Becomes  Cramped. 

(Pig.  20) 

a ls.rge  sweeping  curve  may  easily  be  followed  with- 
out difficulty  when  a field  is  begun  but  if  the  field  is  large 


Fig.  20. 

Lay  Gut  A Turn  Strip  './hen  A Turn  Becomes  Cramped. 


Fig.  21. 

How  To  "Wipe  Out"  a Corner  Or  Pocket. 


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Fig . 22 . 

How  To  Handle  Straw  Stacks  And  Similar  Obstacles 

(26) 


the  turning  may  become  so  cramped  that  the  front  furrow  wheel 
will  not  follow  the  furrow.  The  good  plowman  will  not  allow 
his  plow  to  "cut  and  cover".  When  this  is  apt  to  happen,  sim- 
ply lay  out  a turn  strip  and  the  problem  is  solved.  Pig.  20 
illustrates  such  a case  and  the  manner  of  laying  out  the  strip. 

How  To  "Wipe  Out"  A Corner. 

(Pig.  21) 

A very  simple  and  efficient  way  to  keep  a turn  from 
becoming  difficult  to  make  is  shown  in  Pig.  21.  It  is  called 
"wiping  out"  a corner.  It  amounts  to  plowing  across  the  cor- 
ner twice  or  as  many  times  as  is  necessary  to  make  the  corner 
"easy".  To  do  a neat  job,  the  operator  should  manage  to  get 
the  front  furrow  wheel  over  on  the  plowed  ground  before  he 
drops  the  plow.  All  the  furrows  will  not  be  started  at  the 
same  time  when  this  is  done  and  the  furrow  will  be  easy  to 
follow  on  the  next  round. 

Sometimes  there  will  be  a small  pocket  along  the 
side  of  a field  which  would  otherwise  be  straight.  The  proper 
way  to  handle  this  uneveness  is  to  "wipe"  it  out  the  first 
time  around  and  thus  straighten  out  the  furrow. 

Getting  Around  Straw  Stacks  And  Similar  Obstacles. 

(Pig.  22) 

There  are  different  ways  to  handle  straw  stacks, 
small  clumps  of  trees,  grain  stack  settings,  and  similar 
obstacles.  The  method  described  here  is  very  satisfactory 
and  is  preferred  by  the  author  to  all  other  ways  that  he 
has  tried.  It  allows  the  operator  to  plow  close  to  the  stack 
all  around  and  will  not  make  a crooked  furrow  after  the  stack 
has  been  passed.  As  the  plowing  comes  up  to  the  stack,  lift 
the  plow  and  drop  It  again  on  the  other  side  so  as  to  leave 
a curved  strip  about  a rod  wide  around  the  stack  on  that  side. 
.Vhen  the  plowing  has  reached  the  center  of  the  stack,  turn  to 
the  left  and  swing  around  as  indicated  and  begin  plowing  out 
the  strip.  Turn  to  the  left  again  on  the  other  side  to  get 
oack  into  the  straight  furrow.  After  a few  rounds  done  in  this 
manner,  that  side  of  the  stack  will  be  finished  and  the  plow- 
ing can  be  done  alohg  the  other  side  without  lifting  the  plow. 
After  a few  more  rounds  have  been  made,  the  furrow  will  be 
straight  again. 

Crossing  Pitches. 

(Pig.  23) 

It  does  not  take  much  of  a ditch  to  stall  a tractor 
plowing  outfit  if  the  plow  is  left  in  the  ground.  This  is  be- 
cause when  the  drive  wheels  are  at  the  bottom  of  the  ditch  or 
starting  to  climb  out,  the  plow  is  cutting  deep  over  the  bank. 
Under  these  circumstances,  the  tractor  must  lift  itself  out 
of  the  ditch  when  the  draft  of  the  plow  is  greatly  increased 
with  the  usual  result  that  the  drivers  turn  and  dig  themselves 
in  without  moving  the  outfit.  When  this  happens,  it  is  worse 
than  useless  to  allow  the  drivers  to  keep  on  turning.  The  thing 


f 

V 


to  do  in  this  case  is  to  throw  out  the  clutch  as  scon  as  it  is 
seen  that  the  outfit  does  not  move  when  the  wheels  are  turning 
and.  lengthen  the  hitch  with  a log  chain.  This  takes  a lot  of 
time  and  soon  gets  old  when  it  has  to  be  done  every  time  the 
outfit  comes  around.  Lifting  the  plow  to  cross  a ditch  is  not 
at  all  satisfactory  for  it  results  in  a ragged  job.  The  opera- 
tor has  enough  to  look  after  when  he  is  crossing  a ditch  with- 
out having  to. lift  and  drop  the  plow  within  a few  feet  at  the 
same  time.  The  author  experienced  much  trouble  in  crossing 


Direction  of  Plowing 


Pig  . '23  . 

How  To  Cross  Ditches  Without  Stalling. 


ditches  during  the  first  year  of  his  tractor  plowing  experi- 
ence. This  caused  him  to  devise  a means  to  solve  the  problem 
— a serious  j j roblem  on  a hilly  farm,  after  much  experimenting, 
a way  was  found  to  put  an  end  to  the  difficulty.  Refer  to 
the  sketch  above.  Plow  twice  along  the  ditch  on  the  side  ap- 
proached by  the  outfit.  This  means  that  four  furrows  will  be 
plowed  if  ft  is  a two  bottom  outfit  ana  six  if  it  is  a three 
bottom'  outfit.  It  is  not  necessary  or  even  desirable  to  plow 
near  the  bottom  of  the  ditch.  Confine  the  furrows  along  the 
edge  of  the  bank.  Do  not  disturb  the  other  side  of  the  ditch 
out  run  back  empty  for  the  second  time. 

'/i til" this  done,  when  the  tractor  drive  wheels  are  in 
the  bottom  of  the  ditch,  the  plow  has  entered  the  loosened  soil 
and  is  easy  to  pull.  The  outfit  will  go  on  across  the  ditch 
without  even  hestiating.  Any  ditch  that  can  be  crossed  with 
a binder  ana  horses  can  be  crossed  with  the  tractor  and  plow 
without  trouble  in  this  way.  The  finished  job  will  be  neat 
and  no  sign  will  be  left  'to  indicate  that  the  furrows  had  first 
been  plowed  parallel  to  the  ditch'.  Put  this  idea  to  work  for 
you  if  you  are  bothered  with  ditches. 


(23) 


PART  THHS'3 : SECOND  Ad AR  MANAGEMENT . 


When  a field,  is'. plowed  again  in  another  year,  the  me  - 
thoo  should  be  changed  sufficiently  tc  provide  for  the  dead  fur- 
revs  uo  fall  in  v.  different  place  and  to  keep  the  ground  level 
along  the  borders  of  the  field.  .Both  these  objects  are  easily 
accomplished  without  materially  changing  the  general  method. 

To  have  the  new  dead  furrows  fall  in  a different  place 
it  is  only  necessary  to  shift  the  location  of  the  turn  strip 
tc  either  side  of  where  it  was  t i.  last  time.  This  shift  need 
not  amount  to  more  than  half  the  width  of  the  turn  strip  and  by 
making  it  this  amount,  one  of  the  mark  furrows  will  fill  the 
old  dead  furrow.  This  is  a good  plan  to  follow. 

Tc  keep  the  ground  level  along  the  edges  of  the  field, 
it  is  necessary  to  back  furrow,  or  throw  the  furrows  away  from 
the  outside  of  the  field.  The  whole  field  may  be  back  furrowed 
as  outlined  /under  the  subject  of  the  basin  shaped  field  and 
illustrated  in  Pig.  19.  Some  operators  may  prefer  to  do  this 
but  it  is  not  at  all  necessary  and  in  fields  which  have  one  or 
more  curved  sides,  one  cannot  expect  to  finish  evenly  along 
those  sides  with  this  method.  Since  one  may  go  around  the  field 
to  the  right  as  well  as  to  the  left,  a narrow  strip  may  readily 
be  back  furrowed  around  the  outside  and  the  main  body  of  the 
field  plowed  in  the  usual  manner.  The  width  to  be  back  furrow- 
ed may  be  whatever  the  operator  chooses  to  make  it.  Three  or 
four  rods  makes  a handy  width  in  most  cases.  If  much  discing 
and • other  cultivation  is  done  in  the  field  in  preparing  for  and 
oaring  for  the  crop  that  is  raised  in  the  field,  the  back  fur- 
rows will  disappear  before  it  is  necessary  to  back  furrow  in 
plowing  the  field  again.  If  anything  is  left  of  the  back  fur- 
row ridge:, , however,  a new  one  can  be  made  in  a different  place 
simply  by  changing  the  width  of  the  back  furrowed  strip  slightly 

The  reader  can  best  be  acquainted  with  the  best  prac- 
tice in  second  year  management  by  following  the  procedure  step 
W stop  in  a certain  field  and  studying  the  reason  for  each  step 
as  he  goes  along,  for  our  purpose,  let  us  choose  a rectangular 
fie.La,  Any  other  shape  of  field,  would  do  quite  as  well  , but  the 
principles  can  better  be  shown  by  using  a rectangular  field.  Re- 
xer  to  fig.  24  on  the  next  page.  The  turn  strips  are  marked  out 
while  going  the  first  round  because  in  this  case  no  special  'pro- 
cedure is  necessary  tc  do  a good  job  of  plowing  in  the  corners. 
The  reason  why  one  round  is  first  plowed  the  'first  year  is  that 
the  soil  farthest  in  the  corners  is  more  easily  plowed  in  this 
marine  r . 

upon  entering  the  field,  begin  by  plowing  the  mark 
furrows  for  the  turn  strip  at  the  first  corner.  Plow  the  first 
mark  furrow  along  the  old  dead  furrow,  as  shown,  in  order  to 
fill  it.  (It  may  be  that  nothing  is  left  of  the  old  dead  fnrruv, 
in  which  case  the  turn  strip  may  be  laid  gut  in  the  same  pla.ee 
as  before  and  some  of  the  steps  outlined  here  will  not  oe  nec- 
essary). If  .it  is  known  that  the  old  dead  furrow  does  not  oi- 
seot  the  corner,  disregard  it  and  use  the  ^nglemeter.  The  f_rst 
mark  furrow  should  be  locate  , however, -so  as  to  fill  the  old 
dead  furrow  as  much  as  possible . 


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ii 


% 


* — - 


Fig . 24  , 

Laying  Gut  Work  For  Second  Year  in  a Rectangular  Field 


' 1 


)\ 


(3  C } 


It  is  not  necessary  or  desirable  to  extend  the  mark 
furrows  to  the  fences.  If  the  strip  to  be  back  furrowed  around 
the  field  is  made  four  rods  wide,  then  it  is  not  necessary  to 
bring  the  mark  furrows  closer  to  the  fences  than  this.  After 
laying  out  the  first  turn  strip,  plow  full  depth  to  the  next 
corner  (This  is  taken  to  be  the  southwest  corner.  The  first  fur- 
row  may  be  plowed  around  the  field  in  either  direction) . Keep 
uniformly  the  3ame  distance  away  from  the  fence  by  sighting  on 
something  in  the  distance  which  is  the  proper  distance  away  from 
the  fence  or  by  haying  two  boys  walk  ahead  of  the  outfit  with 
a string  stretched  between  them  at  right  angles  to  the  fence. 

Have  one  boy  walk  close  to  the  fence  with  one  end  of  the  string 
and  follow  close  behind  the  other  boy  with  the  outfit,  taking 
care  thdt  they  keep  the  string  taut  between  them.  This  method 
is  a quick  and  sure  way  of  keeping  the  same  distance  away  from 
the  fence  in  any  case  but  it  is  an  especially  good  way  to  do 
the  job  right  when  the  sides  of  a field  are  curved  or  otherwise 
irregular. 

When  laying  out  the  next  and  remaining  turn  strips, 
remember  to  make  them  all  either  on  the  inside  or  on  the  outside 
of  the  old  dead  furrows . This  point  will  be  better  understood 
by  referring  to  the  drawing.  Since  furrow  No.  2 has  been  made 
to  lie  outside  of  furrow  No.  1,  considering  the  ends  of  the 
field  as  the  -outside,  furrows  No.  4,  No.  8,  and  No.  10  should 
be  made  likewise  to  keep  the  work  uniform.  If  the  gate  had  been 
in  the  southwest  corner,  it  would  have  been  handier  to  make  the 
turn  strixi  for  that  corner  on  the  inside  (north  of.  in  this 
case)  of  the  old  dead  furrow,  in  which  case  the  other  turn  strips 
should  similarly  be  located. 

Furrows  No.  6 and  No.  12  should  be  plowed  a little 
closer  to  the  fence  than  furrows  No.  3 and  No.  9,  When  the  turn  , 
strips  are  made  about  forty  feet  wide,  the  amount  to  make  these 
furrows  closer  will  be  about  twelve  feet.  The  object  of  going 
to  this  little  trouble  is  to  make  the  turning  handier  than  it 
would  be  otherwise.  With  the  turn  strips  shifted  to  one  side 
and  the  first  round  made  the  same  distance  from  the  fences  on 
all  sides,  the  reader  will  see  that  the  turning  cannot  be  hand- 
ily done  from  one  furrow  directly  into  another.  If  the  string 
method  is  used,  simply  have  one  boy  take  up  about  twelve  feet 
of  the  string  when  going  across  the  ends  of  the  field. 

When  the  turn  Strips  are  all  marked  out  and  the  first 
round  is  completed,  the  next  thing  to  do  is  to  back  furrow  on 
furrows  No.  3 and  No.  9,  as  indicated,  until  the  width  at  A is 
the  same  as  the  width  at  B.  There  will  then  be  an  equal  width 
all  around  the  field  to  be  back  furrowed  later,  and  the  furrows 
at  the  corners  will  be  in  the  proper  relation  to  make  turning 
easy  when  the  body  of  the  field  is  plowed,  which  is  the  next 
step.  Plow  out  the  turn  strips  as  soon  as  the  body  of  the  field 
is  plowed.  The  turning  at  the  corner  ends  will  offer  no  diffi- 
culty if  the  strip  around  the  field  has  been  made  as  much  as 
three  or  four  rods  wide.  Then  back  furrow  around  the  outside 
of  the  field,  making  square  corners  at  first  and  turning  to  the 
left  and  finally  cutting...  round,  corners  when  there  is  no  longer 
room  to  turn  to  the  left.  Thus  the  field  is  neatly  finished 
with  the  least  time  lost  in  laying  out  the  field  and  making  the 
corner  turns. 

There  may  be  times  wren  it  is  not  necessary  or  desir- 
able to  back  furrow  along  all  sides  of  the  field.  The  procedure 


(31) 


r 

i 

* 

i 

\ 

f 

i 

4 

i 


! 

\ 


Fig.  25. 

Method  Of  Back  Furrowing  Along  Side. 


in 

r->c l 

do 


lib  case  is  plainly  s norm  in  Fig,  25  above.  Do  the  neces- 
*ack  furrowing  first,  leaving  a head  land  at  each  end  to 
- ' turning  upon.  These  little  head  lands  should  be  defini- 
jt-.Lj-  marked  out  .and  .iici.ue  sane  /a. 1 1 o u ^ as  the  turn  strips  to 

oe  marked  later.  After  the  first  round  is  plowed  on  the  back 
i- urrowxng , plow  across  the  head,  land  with  the  furrows  which  are 
thrown  away  from  the  fence,  as  shown.  This  will  take  care  of 
the  ground  m the  corner.  The  rest  of  the  head  land  is  easily 
plowed  with  the  turn  strip  then  the  field  is  finished  up.  It 
is  eviaent  shot  the  new  deau  furrow  will  fall  in  a new  place. 


( 

\ 


3 2 ) 


G U P P L 3 M E ii  T. 


Adj  us tmen t Arid  Caro  Of  Tract. o r Plows  . 

A good  even  job  of  plowing  if?  in  possible  when  the  plow 
is  net  in  nr oper  adjustment.  Neither  will  a tractor  plow  give 
continued  satisfactory  service  over  a long  period  witnout  re- 
ceiving intelligent  care.  It  is  in  harmony  with  the  purpose  of 
this  book,  therefore,  to  include  a brief  supplement  on  the  ad- 
justment and  care  of  tractor  plows.  In  what  follows,  no  effort 
has  boon  made  to  give  specific  directions  concerning  any  certain 
make  of  plow.  These  are  properly  included  in  the  instruction 
sheet  which  comes  with  the  plow.  The  information  given  here  is 
what  an  experienced  factory  plow  expert  knows  and  what  he  would 
give  to  an  operator  who  was  having  trouble  in  the  field. 


When  a tractor  plow  is  not  doing  good  work , the  cause 
may  be  traced  to  one  or  more  of  the  following  reasons: 

1 . f h e h i t c h i s n o t cor  r e c t . 

2.  The  plow  is  not  running  level. 

3.  The  seems  are  not  parallel  to  the  furrow. 

4.  The  plow  has  been  set  up  sc  that  one  of  the 
bottoms  is  not  in  line  with  the  others. 

5.  The  front  furrow  wheel  is  not  running  where 
it  should  in  relation  to  the  furrow  bank. 

6.  The  coulters  are  not  properly  set. 

7.  a beam  is  twisted  out  of  its  original  shape. 

3.  The  plow  does  not  scour. 

9.  The  shares  are  dull  and  worn , or  changed  in 
shape  by  poor  black smithing . 

10.  The  plowing  speed  is  below  normal. 

11.  The  lugs  on  the  tractor  drive  wheels  have 
loosened  the  ton  soil  to  tne  extent  that  one  furrow 
is  not  thrown  as  high  as  the  others. 

The  Hitch . 

The  great  majority  of  tractor  plowing  troubles  c an  oe 
traced  directly  to  incorrect  hitching  to  the  tractor.  The  prin- 
ciples involved  are  few  and.  simple  but  they  must  be  observed  or 
poor  results  will  surely  follow.  Because  the  center  of  pull  on 
the  tractor  is  not  usually  in  line  with  the  center  of  draft  on 
the  plow,  the  problem  of  side  draft  must  be  met.  This  is  especi- 
ally important  when  the  tractor  runs  with  both  drive  wheels  on 
the  unplowed  land,  hide  draft  will  give  no  trouble  if  it  is 
equally  divided  between  the  tractor  and  plow,  and  herein  lies 
the  solution  to  most  hitch  troubles.  If  all  the  side  draft  is 
given  to  the  plow,  it  will  not  run  straight.  If  all  of  it  is 
given  to  the  tractor,  the  plow  -will  run  all  right  but  the  tract- 
or will  be  hard  to  sneer  and  will  want  to  crowd,  towards  the  fur- 
row . 

As  a rule,  a plow  works  best  with  the  tractor  it  is 
regularly  sold  with.  However,  any  tractor  plow  can  be  correct '-y 
hitched  to  any  standard  tractor  by  the  following  method:  v.fi:r 


(33) 


- 

V 


v-  ■ ,■ 

Sr  '\,v  •-  k< 

. ■ ^ § 


ii  ' . % 

o -•  u 

v'U 


* 

-S  . ■ : > 

V >* 


, V A 


• V/  C4  -v.  * ■ v r. 


v 


i’ig . 25. 

Correct  Lateral  Hitch. 


(34) 


opening  the  furrow , drop  the  plow  and  pull  it  into  the  furrow 
in  the  position  it  is  properly  run.  i . e.  , with  the  front  fur- 
row wheel  0*70  inches  array  from  the  furrow  wall , with  the  beams 
parallel  with  the  furrow,  and  with  all  bottoms  plowing  the 
sane  depth.  Do  this  without  paying  any  attention  to  where  the 
tractor  is  driven.  Get  the  plow  right  first  - it  is  going  to 
do  the  actual  work  of  plowing  the  field.  ,/hen  the  plow  is  pro- 
perly locate* i , disconnect  the  tractor  from  the  plow  and  drive 
it  ahead  a rod  or  so  to  get  it  out  of  the  way.  How  see  that 
the  main  drawbar  of  the  plow  hitch  is  fastened  as  close  as  pos- 
sible to  the  center  of  draft  on  the  plow.  On  a three  bottom 
plow,  this  point  will  be  at  the  end  of  the  middle  bean.  On  plows 
having  an  even  number  of  bottoms,  it  will  be  between  the  two 
middle  beams.  Li 3 connect  any  rods  or  braces  which  may  be  attach- 
ed to  the  main  plow  drawbar  so  that  it  will  be  free  to  swing 
sidewise.  How  give  your  attention  to  the  tractor  and  back  it 
up  so  the  plow  so  that  it  will  be  in  the  position  that  it  is 
desired  to  run.  If  it  is  meant  to  run  in  the  furrow  with  one 
drive  wheel,  place  it  there.  If  it  is  made  to  run  with  both 
drive  who- Is  or:  the  unplowed  ground,  place  it  so  that  it  is  far 
enough  aw ay  from  the  furrow  to  prevent  breaking  down  the  furrow 
wall  - usually  eight  inches  are  enough  - and  be  sure  that  the 
tractor  is  parallel  to  the  furrow.  If  the  tractor  has  a swing- 
ing drawbar,  allow  it  to  swing  freely.  How  connect  the  two 
drawbars  together  and  carefully  drive  the  tractor  ahead  suffi- 
ciently to  take  all  the  slack  out  of  the  hitch  without  moving 
the  plow.  The  side  draft,  if  there  is  any,  has  been  allowed  to 
compensate  itself  automatically  between  the  tractor  and  plow  by 
using  this  method.  How  make  the  plow  hitch  rigid  by  fastening 
the  angle  brace  at  the  nearest  hole  and  make  the  tractor  draw- 
bar rigid  also.  The  outfit  is  now  properly  connected  as  far 
as  the  lateral  hitch  is  concerned.  If  the  front  furrow  wheel 
does  not  run  two  inches  away  from  the  furrow  bank  when  the  out- 
fit is  started,  as  it  should,  changing  the  angle  brace  one  hole 
either  way  will  make  it  run  right.  A three  bottom  outfit  is 
correctly  hitched  when  connected  as  shown  in  Fig.  26. 

The  vertical,  while  less  important,  must  be  correct 
if  the  weight  of  the  plow  is  to  be  divided  equally  between  the 
wheels  and  if  the  lifting  mechanism  is  to  'work  properly,  a part 
is  attached  to  the  front  end  of  the  plow  beams  which  carries  a 
vertical  row  of  holes.  This  is  called  the  bridle  of  the  plow 
and  it  provides  for  the  vertical  hitch  adjustment.  The  draw- 
bar is  correctly  fastened  to  the  bridle  at  the  hole  which  lies 
nearest  the  straight  line  drawn  from  the  end  of  the  tractor 
drawbar  to  a point  on  the  shin  of  the  middle  moldboard  which  is 
two  inches  above  the  top  edge  of  the  share.  This  point  is 
known  as  the  center  of  resistance  of  the  plow.  This  adjustment 
is  made  with  the  plow  in  the  ground  and  it  will  vary  with  the 
depth  of  plowing  somewhat.  A good  way  to  check  up  on  the  verti- 
cal hitch  adjustment  is  to  stand  at  right  angles  uo  the  outfit 
and  about  a hundred  feet  away,  from  this  position,  it  is  easy 
to  see  if  the  hole  used  on  the  bridle  is  on  the  line  mentioned 
above.  If  the  drawbar  is  hitched  too  high,  the  front  wheels 
will  carry  too /much  of  the  weight;  if  hitched  too  low,  the  weight 
will  be  thrown  on  the  rear  wheel  and  there  will  be  insufficient 
traction  on  the  front  wheels  to  actuate  the  lifting  nechani sm 
as  it  is  designed  to  work . fig.  27  shows  the  vertical  hitch 
in  correct  adjustment. 


(35) 


A mining  Level . 

'Sven  plowing  cannot  be  expected  when  all  the  bottoms 
are  net  plowing  at  the  same  depth.  To  make  sure  of  this,  actu-  » 
ally  measure  the  furrow  bank-  behind  each  bottom  or  the  thickness 
of  the  furrow  slices  at  the  shin  of  the  moldboard.  Use  the  ad- 
justing levers  if  it  is  found  that  the  plow  is  not  running  level. 

Parallel  Beams . 

Proper  adjustment  of  the  hitch  will  bring  the  beams 
to  run  parallel  to  the  furrow. 

Lining  Up  Bottoms . 

This  can  be  quickly  checked  by  holding  a string  tight- 
ly across  the  points  of  the  front  and  rear  shares.  If  the  point 
of  the  middle  share  is  slightly  in  front  or  behind  the  string,  it 
will  not  matter  but  if  the  point  is  over'  a quarter  of  an  inch 
above  or  below  the  string,  the  ’working  qualities  of  the  plow 
will  he  affected.  This  should  be  looked,  after  when  the  plow  is 
set  up  but  it  is  not  often  done.  If  the  plow  is  found  to  be 
wrong  in  this  respect,  it  can  be  made  right  by  loosening  the 
bolts  which  fasten  the  bottom  to  the  beam,  or  by  exchanging  the 
two  front  bottoms  if  this' will  not  do  it.  If  the  beam  is  sprung 
out  of  shape,  it  will  have  to  be  straightened  or  replaced  with 
a new  beam.  A plow  will  never  run  right  with  a twisted  beam.  It 
is  usually  due  to  negligence  in  operating  the  plow  without  hav- 
ing a wooden  break  pin  or  other  safety  device  on  the  hitch. 

front  furrow  Wheel . 

Most  operators  make  the  mistake  of  running  the  front 
furrow  wheel  against  the  furrow  wall,  as  horse  plows  are  usually 
run.  Since  most  tractor  plows  are  made  for  this  wheel  to  run 
two  inches  away  from  the  furrow  wall,  to  run  it  against  the  wall 
results  in  giving  the  front  bottom  two  extra  inches  of  furrow 
width  to  turn.  The  first  furrow  is  thus  thrown  higher  than  the 
others  and  a poor  job  of  plowing  is  the  result.  By  keeping  the 
7/heel  out  where  it  belongs,  the  draft  is  lightened  and  the  wheel 
b oxi ng  is  saved  f r om  e xo e s s i ve  we ar . 

Coul ters . 

Much  uneven  plowing  is  due  to  improperly  set  coult- 
ers. it  stands  to  reason  that  the  moldboard  will  turn  the  amount 
of  soil  that  the  coulter  cuts  off  for  it.  Therefore,  if  the 
different  coulters  are  set  so  that  varying  amounts  of  soil  are 
given  to  the  different  bottoms  to  turn,  the  plowing  job  is  bound 
to  be  uneven  due  to  some  furrows  being  thrown  higher  than  others. 
The  coulter  should  be  set  three-quarters  of  an  inch  outside  the 
shin  of  the  moldboard  so  that  the  lands ide  will  not  rub  on  the 
furrow  bank  and  so  that  the  bank  will  be  cut  clean.  The  axle  of 
the  coulter  should  be  directly  above  the  point  of  the  share  and 
the  blade  should  not  be  run  deeper  than  three  inches  except  in 
sod  where  it  is  necessary  to  cut  off  roots.  To  run  them  deep- 
er in  stubble  will  result  in  the  trash  being  pushed  ahead  of  the 
blade  instead  of  being  easily  cut  through.  The  coulters  should 
be  adjusted  in  the-  field  under  operating  conditions,  especially 
if  they  have  become  a bit  wobbly.  Keep  coulter  blades  sharp. 

Scouring , 

To  insure  good  scouring,  the  soil  must  be  right,  the 
plow  must  be  adapted,  to  the  soil,  the  plowing  speed  must  be  suf- 
ficient, and  throwing  the  soil  too  much  up  hill  should  not  be 

(36; 


attempted.  Y/.i th  a new  plow,  t 
ave  patience  until 


he  operator  must  plow  sham  1 0 / and 


h 


the  land  polish 

■h 


secured.  Strong  lye  solu- 
tion will  take  the  paint  off  but  it  must  not  be  lei  t on  morn* 
than  a few  minutes,  so  take  it  to  the  field  when  starting  out . 
Swab  the  polished  surfaces  with  used  engine  oil  every  night  to 
protect  t hem  f r om  r u s t . It  p ay s . 


Share  s . 

It  is 

shares  than  to 
shares  through 
should  be  given 
will  be  apt  to 
qualities.  An 


cheaper  to  pay  the  blacksmith  for  sharpening 
pay  for  the  extra  fuel  necessary  to  pull  bull 
the  ground.  Only  a.  blacksmith  of  known  ability 
the  work  of  sharpening  shares.  A poor  smith 
warp  them  out  of  shape  or  hurt  their  scouring 
extra,  set  of  shares  will  soon  pay  for  themselve 


s . 


Plowing  Spe ed. . 

Most  tractor  plows  are  designed  to  be  drawn  at  the 
same  rate  of  speed  that  a horse  travels  when  walking,  or  two  and 
one-half  miles  per  hour.  To  plow  in  high  gear  usually  overworks 
the  tractor  and  nothing  is  gained  in  the  end.  Low  gear  speed  is 
a comfortable  working  speed,  and  the  most  satisfactory  for  plow- 
ing. If  the  draft  of  the  plow  is  great  enough  to  reduce  the 
speed  of  the  outfit  below  that  required  for  scouring,  the  remedy 
is  to  reduce  the  load. 


Lugs  Loosening  The  Top  Soil . 

Many  times  a tractor  will  be  in  perfect  adjustment  and 
operated  properly  but  its  work  will  be  uneven  - usually  the  mid- 
dle furrow  is  not  as  high  as  the  others.  At  first  blush,  it  is 
a .rather  puzzling  case  but  the  answer  lies  in  the  fact  that  the 
lugs  on  the  tractor  wheels,  especially  when  both  wheels  run  over 
the  same  ground,  loosen  the  top  few  inches  of  the  soil  so  that 
when  the  furrow  is  turned,  the  loose  soil  rolls  off  into  the 
t urro'w . The  result  is  that  the  bottom  following  the  drive  wheel 
does  not  throw  its  furrow  as  high  as  the  others.  The  same  amount 
ol  soil  is  in  each  furrow,  however,  and  the  field  will  settle 
level. 


Oiling . 

Oil  the  wheels,  coulters,  axle  hangers,  and  lifting 
mechanism  parts  frequently  and  regularly.  If  the  coulters  have 
roller  bearings,  ’wash  them  in  kerosene  and  repack  with  clean  hard 
oil  once  each  week.  If  plenty  of  grease  is  kept  in  the  wheel 


ooxings,  dirt  cannot  enter  easily, 
ture  of  air  slaked  lime  and  hard 
the  polished 
'-vine , Ma 
plow  from 


Keep  all  nuts  tight,  a mix- 


iMPORTAfll 


hara.  01 

surfaces  when  laying  up 
ts  and  mice  will  not  eat  it 
moisture  indefinitely,  and 


is  the  best  thing  to  use  on 
the  plow  for  any  length  of 
off,  it  will  protect  the 
it  will  not  harden.  Try  it. 


put  on  a tractor  plow  for  the 
a wagon  - to  carry  the  load. 


same  reason 
The  tractor 


Wheels  are 
are  put  on 

be  obliged  to  pull  more  than  is  necessary  to  cut  off 
1':~“s  and  tur 
esistance 


pulverized 


that  they 
should  not 
the  furrow  sue 
the  fric -clonal 

^eight  01  the  rear  furrow  wheel  should  be  such  that  there  will 
oe  about  half  an  inch  clearance  under  the  rear  end  of  the  lanu- 


1 them  over 
due  to  the 


olus,  of 


weight  of  the  plow 


course 

The 


side.  This  insures  that  the  weight  of  the  plow  will  'oe  carried 


op  the  wheels  instead  of  being  dragged  on  the  bottom  of  the  fur- 
;?;f-  setting  the  rear  furrow  wheel  to  run  a trifle  towards 

plowed  ground,  the  landsides  will  be  held  away  from  the  fur- 
xow  banks,  thus  lightening  the  draft  at  another  important  place. 

(37) 


To  the  Reader; 

In  this  little  volume,  an  effort  has 
been  made  to  answer  every  question  that  is 
likely  to  arise  in  applying  the  Ahart  Method 
to  any  field  which  is  adapted  to  power  farm- 
ing. if  there  is  an  individual  problem  for 
which  the  solution  cannot  be  found  herein, 
the  reader  is  requested  to  send  to  the  author 
a rough  sketch  and  brief  description  of  the 
j-iela,  together  with  a stamped  and  self-address 
ed  envelope  for  reply.  This  service  is  made 
without  charge  to  purchasers  of  record. 


"Boni 
Bow  C 


(38} 


